Whisper
#byefelicia
Stephen Svitala
http://www.wtae.com/news/local/fayette-county-man-charged-with-failed-suicide-attempt-that-hurt-two-people/-/9681086/23964216/-/10b10cfz-/index.html#ixzz2qbitc9fpA 71-year-old Vietnam War veteran lost his leg in a car wreck after being hit by a man who was trying to kill himself
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Joseph Patton, 46 of Connellsville, is facing aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person and other charges with the May 2013 wreck. Troopers filed charges Thursday.
State police say Patton left his mother's house depressed after a fight with his wife and decided to speed through a stop sign at the intersection
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to wreck into an embankment.
After crossing 981, police said Patton's Chevrolet Impala hit a Chevrolet Silverado, driven by Alice Fox, head-on. They said Patton also hit Stephen Svitala, who was riding on his Harley Davidson motorcycle.
Police said Fox suffered a shattered ankle and Svitala needed his left leg amputated. Svitala said the only thing he remembers from the wreck is the sound of the medical helicopter's propellers.
"I still don't know where that road is, Hodge Road," Svitala said. He said he was just out riding his motorcycle when the crash happened.
"I think he was just trying to run into that embankment but there I was and there she was."
Svitala, a retired U.S. Steel worker and Vietnam veteran, awakened in the hospital to learn about his injuries.
"I'm pissed. You know? But I guess I'm lucky. They saved me because that thing was all tore up and I damn near died in the hospital," he said.
Svitala now uses crutches, a walker and a rolling computer chair to navigate around his home. He lives alone and completes tasks like grocery shopping and going to the laundromat alone.
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Svitala said Patton was under-insured and that Svitala was responsible for about $5,000 of his own medical bills because of the wreck. He has contacted an attorney and said he is glad police charged Patton.
Police have issued a warrant for Patton's arrest. Troopers said while he was not seriously hurt immediately after the wreck, he is back in the hospital, though it was unclear if it was related to the wreck.